Luongo, on the trade block currently and for the last several months, is cool with that. What he doesn't want to do, though, is stick with Vancouver beyond the 48-game 2013 schedule.

Roberto Luongo could well wind up playing 2013 in Vancouver, after all. (AP Photo)

"I'm willing to stay here this season because it will be short. But I do not want to stay here long term," Luongo told RDS.ca, according to a translation of the story, which originally appeared in French.

Cory Schneider unseated Luongo as Vancouver's starter last season.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have long been connected to the former All-Star, and speculation over that only increased when Dave Nonis, who acquired Luongo in 2006 as Canucks GM, took over as Leafs GM for the fired Brian Burke, who was reportedly reticent to include top prospects in a deal and had a legendary distaste for contracts like Luongo's; the 33-year-old has has 10 years and $47.3 million remaining on the deal he signed in 2010.

Canucks general manager Mike Gillis told reporters on Sunday that there has been plenty of discussion around Luongo, but that he is in no hurry to deal him.

“We're at a point with this team where we want specific types of players coming back to us that can help us today and down the road,” Gillis said, according to the Vancouver Sun. “I think that's a reasonable request so we're going to stick to it.”

“There's been a lot more interest in Roberto than people wanted to recognize because the contract was onerous or difficult,” Gillis said. “That has never been mentioned to me by one team. I know some people like to make a big deal of that but it's a very friendly contract for a lot of reasons. That's one of the reasons why in the new collective (bargaining) agreement there are penalties and you can't sign these types of contracts because they are favorable. So contract is not an issue.”